TV reception: Interference

Are you still having reception problems, even though your antenna system is the right type to receive TV signals in your area and it’s in good condition?

Does the problem occur intermittently and affect your neighbours’ reception at the same time in the same way?

Your poor reception may actually be because of interference.
Interference means that your television reception is affected by the
presence of other, unwanted signals (more technically called ‘an
emission of electromagnetic energy’) from other devices.

Interestingly, interference does not affect signal strength levels; it affects the signal quality,
and this is what can cause your reception problems. This means that
signal boosters won’t help with interference—they’re likely to make
reception problems even worse.

If you still think you are suffering from interference, there’s a range of causes, some of which may surprise you!

Electrical appliances

A common cause of interference to TV reception is impulse noise
(short high-energy bursts of wideband noise) that is emitted from
domestic electrical appliances either in or outside the home. These
appliances include:

Electric motor-based appliances, including:

washing machines

swimming pool pumps

power tools.

Thermostat-controlled appliances, including:

hot water systems

water-bed heaters

refrigerators

pool chlorinators.

Other electrical items, including:

LED lights

Smart Meters and light switches (often because of poor connections)

electric fences.

The best way to identify an interference source in your home or
neighborhood is to eliminate possible problem items by turning
appliances off and then checking if the interference has gone from your
TV.

Amateur and CB radio

If you have an amateur or a CB radio,
it may be causing your reception problems. This can be because your
equipment or antenna installation is faulty or your equipment isn’t able
to reject unwanted transmissions.

Overload of signal amplifiers

Signal boosters like masthead and distribution amplifiers
increase the strength of signals received at a television set. They are
mainly used in areas that receive weaker signals from distant broadcast
sites or to provide signals to several television receivers. They won’t
usually improve signal quality and can actually make television
receiving systems susceptible to high-level unwanted signal sources.

If your local expert determines that a masthead or distribution
amplifier is necessary to provide enough signal level to your television
receivers, we strongly advise that you ask her or him to install an
amplifier with a built-in filter or to install a filter in front of the
amplifier. This will limit the potential impact of mobile broadband signals on your television reception.

Power line and street light interference

Defective street lights and power line infrastructure can cause
interference to TV reception. Power line interference occurs near
high-voltage power lines—most commonly during hot, dry and windy weather
when there is sparking between insulators and metal supporting
brackets.

A similar problem occurs in the evenings as dew forms on built-up
dust, salt or industrial pollution that has collected on the insulators
and brackets of the power line—again causing sparking.

In both instances, the interference generally clears after rainfall.
If the interference continues after rain, then the power line may be
physically faulty and will require maintenance.

Street lighting interference, like power line interference, will
generally affect several nearby homes. The interference starts when the
street lighting turns on/off or coincides with it flashing on and off
during the day or night.

Persistent power line or street light interference should be reported to the relevant electricity supplier.

WARNING: Do not personally attempt to rectify any suspected faults on
power poles, power lines or street lighting. It’s essential that you
contact your local electricity supplier if problems occur with power or
lighting utilities.